Peres wants to yield sovereignty over holy sites to Pope
Hinting at a secret agreement with the Vatican, Israeli President Shimon Peres and his former sidekick Yossi Beilin are pressuring the government of Israel to yield sovereignty over six holy sites to the Catholic Church. Pope Benedict XVI is arriving in Israel next week and sources speculate this is connected to the land handover.
But Interior Minister from the Shas Party, Eli Yishai, refuses to authorize the deal and the Tourism Minister is also skeptical about the surrender of Israeli control over the Biblical sites.
Army Radio said that the president was heavily pressuring the government to surrender sovereignty over six sites, including the Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth, the Coenaculum on Mount Zion (which Jews believe to contain the tomb of King David), the Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, and the Church of the Multiplication on the Kinneret.
A report in Israel National News, however, said that the six sites Peres wanted to hand over were as follows: Mt. Tabor, Capernaum and Mt. of Beatitudes on the north Kinneret shore, and three churches: Gethsemane (Gat Shmanim) Church in the Kidron (Jehoshaphat) Valley between the Old City and Mt. of Olives, the Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth, and one in Tamra. That report said Peres was reluctant about handing over the Mt. Zion site.
The Mt. Zion building housing King David’s Tomb was granted to the Diaspora Yeshiva over 40 years ago, and yeshiva heads fear that the Catholic Church wishes to turn it into a pilgrimage site for hundreds of thousands of Catholics and hold religious services there. Peres reportedly did not include this site on the list of those he feels Israel should give the Vatican.
On Sunday, according to the Army Radio report, Peres' bureau requested that the Interior Ministry sign documents conceding sovereignty on the sites, but the interior minister refused. Yishai was quoted as saying that he opposes all yielding of sovereignty. "Every concession like this limits the Israeli government's ability to function as a sovereign government in the area," he said.
Referring to Pope Benedict XVI's upcoming visit to the region scheduled for May 11-15, Yishai said, "I am certain that the aim of the pope's visit is not to cause damage and not to gain sovereignty." He shouldn't be so sure. There have long been reports of a secret deal, concurrent with the Oslo Accords, in which Peres and Beilin -- who were then running the show at the foreign ministry -- had promised the Vatican that sovereignty would be yielded.
Relinquishing sovereignty over the sites would mean that they would legally belong to Vatican City, and that any Israeli request to pave roads, or lay water, sewerage or electrical infrastructure would have to be approved by the Vatican. "If we were sure that this present to the Christian world would bring millions of Christian pilgrims here, then we would have a good reason to think about it," Tourism Minister Stas Meseznikov was quoted as saying. "But since we're not sure that it will happen, why should we give out gifts?"
But former Beilin was quoted in the report as saying that Israel had not behaved satisfactorily in recent dealings with the Vatican. "We need to compromise with them," he said. He did not explain why, or give the reason why surrendering sovereignty was a "compromise." The Army Radio report also quoted Beit Hanassi as saying that the negotiations had been going on for long enough, and that the time had come to compromise with the Vatican and come to an agreement.
There have been unconfirmed reports that Peres and Beilin are being compensated handsomely for representing the Vatican's interests.
Prof. Yitzchak Minerbi, author and expert on Israel-Vatican relations, told Israel National News: “Even if some Vatican sources threaten to call off the visit if we do not give in – and there are definitely some elements there who don’t want the visit to happen – this is no reason to give in.... Regarding religion or ideology – we must not give in even one iota. And that’s why I object to the agreement signed in 1993 between Israel and the Vatican, which practically begins with the words, ‘in awareness of the historic process of reconciliation between Catholics and Jews.’ When we say reconciliation, we mean an understanding between equals – but the Catholics understand it to mean that they will swallow and convert us. We – government officials and rabbis - must do our homework better!”
Regarding Mt. Zion, Prof. Minerbi is equally admant: "The arrangement there is one one that has worked for over 150 years - namely, the status quo set in place all the way back in 1852. There are many competing claims there between various churches, etc., and if any small change is made, it can rock the whole structure."
But Interior Minister from the Shas Party, Eli Yishai, refuses to authorize the deal and the Tourism Minister is also skeptical about the surrender of Israeli control over the Biblical sites.
Army Radio said that the president was heavily pressuring the government to surrender sovereignty over six sites, including the Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth, the Coenaculum on Mount Zion (which Jews believe to contain the tomb of King David), the Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, and the Church of the Multiplication on the Kinneret.
A report in Israel National News, however, said that the six sites Peres wanted to hand over were as follows: Mt. Tabor, Capernaum and Mt. of Beatitudes on the north Kinneret shore, and three churches: Gethsemane (Gat Shmanim) Church in the Kidron (Jehoshaphat) Valley between the Old City and Mt. of Olives, the Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth, and one in Tamra. That report said Peres was reluctant about handing over the Mt. Zion site.
The Mt. Zion building housing King David’s Tomb was granted to the Diaspora Yeshiva over 40 years ago, and yeshiva heads fear that the Catholic Church wishes to turn it into a pilgrimage site for hundreds of thousands of Catholics and hold religious services there. Peres reportedly did not include this site on the list of those he feels Israel should give the Vatican.
On Sunday, according to the Army Radio report, Peres' bureau requested that the Interior Ministry sign documents conceding sovereignty on the sites, but the interior minister refused. Yishai was quoted as saying that he opposes all yielding of sovereignty. "Every concession like this limits the Israeli government's ability to function as a sovereign government in the area," he said.
Referring to Pope Benedict XVI's upcoming visit to the region scheduled for May 11-15, Yishai said, "I am certain that the aim of the pope's visit is not to cause damage and not to gain sovereignty." He shouldn't be so sure. There have long been reports of a secret deal, concurrent with the Oslo Accords, in which Peres and Beilin -- who were then running the show at the foreign ministry -- had promised the Vatican that sovereignty would be yielded.
Relinquishing sovereignty over the sites would mean that they would legally belong to Vatican City, and that any Israeli request to pave roads, or lay water, sewerage or electrical infrastructure would have to be approved by the Vatican. "If we were sure that this present to the Christian world would bring millions of Christian pilgrims here, then we would have a good reason to think about it," Tourism Minister Stas Meseznikov was quoted as saying. "But since we're not sure that it will happen, why should we give out gifts?"
But former Beilin was quoted in the report as saying that Israel had not behaved satisfactorily in recent dealings with the Vatican. "We need to compromise with them," he said. He did not explain why, or give the reason why surrendering sovereignty was a "compromise." The Army Radio report also quoted Beit Hanassi as saying that the negotiations had been going on for long enough, and that the time had come to compromise with the Vatican and come to an agreement.
There have been unconfirmed reports that Peres and Beilin are being compensated handsomely for representing the Vatican's interests.
Prof. Yitzchak Minerbi, author and expert on Israel-Vatican relations, told Israel National News: “Even if some Vatican sources threaten to call off the visit if we do not give in – and there are definitely some elements there who don’t want the visit to happen – this is no reason to give in.... Regarding religion or ideology – we must not give in even one iota. And that’s why I object to the agreement signed in 1993 between Israel and the Vatican, which practically begins with the words, ‘in awareness of the historic process of reconciliation between Catholics and Jews.’ When we say reconciliation, we mean an understanding between equals – but the Catholics understand it to mean that they will swallow and convert us. We – government officials and rabbis - must do our homework better!”
Regarding Mt. Zion, Prof. Minerbi is equally admant: "The arrangement there is one one that has worked for over 150 years - namely, the status quo set in place all the way back in 1852. There are many competing claims there between various churches, etc., and if any small change is made, it can rock the whole structure."
Add a Comment
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Comment by Dale on May 6, 2009 at 11:49am -
NEVER, NEVER, NEVER Give up ANY more of tour territory to anyone for any reason at all!!!!
This whole area,all the way out into modern day Iraq is ISRAEL!!!!!
God gave it ALL to YOU, His Chosen people!!!! It would ALL be yours today, BUT the Jewish people
would not listen to God, so He let your enemies kick you out of your own land!!!!
REPENT & Turn to JESUS CHRIST!!!! Jesus IS the Messiah!!!
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Comment by wharold on May 5, 2009 at 11:05pm -
I seem to recall Barry Chamish, several years ago, mentioning all this was going to happen via Peres.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3557853190547322236
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Comment by RonaldH on May 5, 2009 at 4:12pm -
Jews everywhere should look at themselves in the mirror and realize that we have been psychologically traumatized. The Jews who want to give away their property and basic rights in order to appease the haters are too numerous to count. Deep down, these Jews fear another Holocaust will be visited upon them. They are motivated by fear - not by Jewish 'power', or their 'control' or their 'influence'.
No one in Israel is blocking the Vatican from exercising all of their rights and freedoms. Why should the Vatican have sovereignty within another country? Jews are stupid. Today, the Vatican is trying to the best of their ability to be friends with Israel; but the truth is: if Jews weren't thoroughly intimidated by the murder and thefts Catholics have inflicted upon Jews over the previous 2000 years these are discussions of ceding sovereignty would not even occur.
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Comment by Robert Bernier on May 5, 2009 at 8:11am -
It started with the Oslo Agreements …
After the horrible mistakes he commited as a result of his total lack of vision, Peres should keep away of politics and Media. For more details about Jerusalem : Http://israelagainstterror.blogspot.com/2007/12/myths-and-facts-about-jerusalem-and.html
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Comment by Jonathan Ezekiel on May 4, 2009 at 9:34pm -
Here we go again, this man never stops to suprize me. Lets give, why doesent he start by giving all that he ows back to the Arabs.
Jonathan Ezekiel.
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